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I have no qualms about distracting from the discussion. I don't have any shots of Sugita in drag, but there are some interesting shots of Shiraishi with last week's interview on the official site. Such as this one:

Access to all the interviews -- Endou Aya, Shiraishi Minoru, and now Hirano Aya -- is here.

OT reply, but I guess you haven't heard that one drama CD of Haruhi yet? English translation can be found at http://www12.brinkster.com/stratoct/haruhi.htm, although its meant to be heard (8th track is an absolute riot the moment you hear it XD)

For anyone interested, there's a subtitled version of the Sound Around drama CD on youtube which makes for easier listening and understanding. The scripts seems to be the same one too.

On topic... inspired by kj1980's post about Fukuhara Kaori's potential... I'm kinda excited by the prospect of seeing more young, talented but obscure seiyuus making it big to one day claim the title of the next generation seiyuu queen or something. I mean it's not an everyday chance that you get to watch a young seiyuu gaining fame and popularity to become a household name even to the less-informed fans right as it is happening. And to some fans who have an eye for spotting talent when they are still raw, there ought to be plenty of satisfaction in watching them realize their potential and saying "I knew it!"

Ultimately, these are just common mentality for fandom found in a lot of places especially sports, and it's one that is well founded though it does not necessary applies to everyone. So I guess I speak for myself really, Megu-chan and Hocchan both got popular when I didn't had access to digisubs and the information that is the internet. Personally I like Aya and I think she's a great seiyuu. She can be said to be the first seiyuu sensation (not counting Mizuki Nana because I noticed her only after starting Nanoha A's later than every one else) that I'm able to follow and witness first hand, though when I say follow I'm not even half as dedicated as Kaoru Chujo.

to tiring of the concert scene and the raving fanboys who tend to get out of control (and when your that popular personal safety can become an issue).

Both Aya and her management knew that her skills as a singer is nowhere near what it takes to put her in the top tier of seiyuu singers after comparing the sales of her personal single "Ashita no Prism" to that of the Haruhi ones (it's more than a ratio of 1 to 10 btw) . "God Knows" and "Lost my music" where one-offs that just hit all the right buttons and rode on the Haruhi hype. As a singer, the other seiyuu in Haruhi, Chihara Minori, is actually way more skilled than Hirano Aya.

Also being a seiyuu is not that prolific in Japan. Most seiyuu still rides the train and all that, which is something you won't see normal celebrities do. Heck I've ran into Mizuki Nana and Shimizu Ai at different times both at the Shinjuku station just last year, they were dressed quite normally (no sunglasses or big hats etc) and they were not even trying to hide themselves. I went up to Mizuki Nana and greeted her and she was surprised that someone recognized her (let alone a foreigner). Shimizu Ai OTOH even wore lolita which made her stand out even more than the OLs that ran through the station. I think it's safe to say that both of them are at least as popular as Hirano Aya and in fame for longer as well, so if they are okay with it I don't see what makes Hirano Aya any different.

EDIT: I've also ran into Chiba Saeko at a festival in Shibuya (even snapped a picture) and stood next to Kuwashima Houko on the yamanote line, neither even tried to hide their faces with any accessories. So yeah, seiyuu are quite down to earth compared with your "normal" celebrities.

Great post from houkoholic. For more info about a seiyuu's life, people should have a look at this post by kj1980 and other posts in the thread in General Anime on The Industry - Lifestyle and Wages. I can't blame Hirano Aya for wanting to be more than just a seiyuu: seiyuus are near the bottom of the entertainment industry pecking order. Aya rode the train to the Suzumiya Haruhi concert in March, apparently without getting bothered.

Hey, houkoholic, how come I never read your great blog before? Stupid me. Even if I disagree with you on Aya in Lucky Star, I know you'll have good reasons. I think this is one of the memorable performances. Though as I mention in the blog piece, I'm not sure Aya agrees. What you say about Aya as a singer is true enough, but Ashita no Prism was just not as good a song as God Knows, either. Or as good as a couple she's done since.

Good to see that Chihara Minori is getting her due as a singer. I remember seeing photos of her doing one-woman street shows with her guitar early last spring.

houkoholic, I just may have to visit Japan and ride the train round the clock if you occasionally run into seiyuu by pure coincidence.

Thanks for the interview reading, Kaoru. Your fandom is nearly unmatched even among those of us who live, eat, and breathe seiyuu news. Somehow didn't see Hirano as the type to read manga, even in her time off. Her thoughts on the part, while not surprising to me, nevertheless show she at least puts some effort into research.

I've translated the [
Hey, houkoholic, how come I never read your great blog before? Stupid me. Even if I disagree with you on Aya in Lucky Star, I know you'll have good reasons. I think this is one of the memorable performances. Though as I mention in the blog piece, I'm not sure Aya agrees. What you say about Aya as a singer is true enough, but Ashita no Prism was just not as good a song as God Knows, either. Or as good as a couple she's done since.

Half of my problem I have with Aya in Lucky Star is that she makes too much unnecessary little noises in her delivery, which sort of goes against Konata's image of a lazy and slow delivery style of speech. The other half is her (bad) habit of putting too much emphasis in the last syllubal of the sentence. One episode of when Kagami and Tsukasa imagining Konata mumbling at her part-time work is what Konata's imagine should be like - someone who doesn't even want to waste energy in talking in something she has no interest in, so both habit of Aya's delivery is not really suited to Konata's character IMO, and I think Aya herself knows it too and is having a hard time matching her skills to the character, hence her own impression on her delivery which is not as smooth as it could have been.

As for her singing, I'm fairly certain that both Aya and her management is working very hard on improving her appeal. Anisongs are getting a lot of attention lately and is being heavily invested in, not to mention as a seiyuu personal CDs and concerts is where the money is in thus they surely will not overlook this area.

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Good to see that Chihara Minori is getting her due as a singer. I remember seeing photos of her doing one-woman street shows with her guitar early last spring.

Her appearance in Animelo this year will certainly be a milestone for her as a singer.

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Originally Posted by Wavedash

houkoholic, I just may have to visit Japan and ride the train round the clock if you occasionally run into seiyuu by pure coincidence.

It's probably not that hard I reckon. I have friends running into seiyuu at stations before as well. They usually carry with them some baggage so it's easy to spot, as it's common that they have to provide their own clothings for photo sessions and events and what not. A lot of female seiyuu also talk about their experience with gropers and being hit on by drunken salarymen on the train.

The only female seiyuu that I know of who doesn't seem to use the train much is Tamura Yukari, instead she uses taxis and she tells stories about how she regularly ran into some taxi drivers who refuse to accept her business due to the way she dresses, which they mistaken her working in those kinds of "services", heh.

Half of my problem I have with Aya in Lucky Star is that she makes too much unnecessary little noises in her delivery, which sort of goes against Konata's image of a lazy and slow delivery style of speech. The other half is her (bad) habit of putting too much emphasis in the last syllable of the sentence. One episode of when Kagami and Tsukasa imagining Konata mumbling at her part-time work is what Konata's imagine should be like - someone who doesn't even want to waste energy in talking in something she has no interest in, so both habit of Aya's delivery is not really suited to Konata's character IMO, and I think Aya herself knows it too and is having a hard time matching her skills to the character, hence her own impression on her delivery which is not as smooth as it could have been....

Fascinating points. I was liking those extra little sounds as feeling like a sloppy otaku. I have no real previous image of Konata to go against, but I can see your point, which is probably what the director was getting at, too, when he told her to go slower. I'll listen for the emphasis on the last syllable.

My own opinion is that Aaya is not a "pro" in the way of Horie Yui, say, who is very flexible and in control of everything she does, but whom I sometimes find too professional, too smooth, and a bit -- not mechanical, but something like that. Not that I don't enjoy her work. Aaya is rough in some ways, and can repeat herself (like with that final emphasis, or with the way Layla's voice drops), but is now doing especially interesting things. Including Konata, which is a style of voice I can't remember hearing before. And especially Layla, for me.

I always have to factor in the fact that I have never lived in Japan to soak up the subtleties of how people really talk and to learn Japanese better. I tend to like the extremes. I'm always disappointed to hear Yahagi Sayuri trying to sound more normal and not giving us her own extravagant voice, the one she used in Karin and Kyoushirou. And I love Sasaki Nozomi's voice. My favorite seiyuu, however, would come from among Kuwashima Houko, Paku Romi, Tanaka Rie, Kawasumi Ayako and Orikasa Fumiko, with Koshimizu Ami, Yahagi Sayuri and Aaya coming up fast. In homage to your avatar, I'll add that I'm enjoying Nana's work in Darker than Black.

I would agree with houkoholic's points if not for the fact that this is just one side of Konata's character and one which I think is getting little screentime thanks to the expanded characterizations that the anime has brought along with it. Quite frankly, my feeling with each passing episode is also that Aya's delivery of Konata seems to be slipping more frequently to a outgoing and at times impish personality, but I think that is logical progression relative to how the anime is portraying her to be one who enjoys the times she spends teasing and having fun with her friends and the otaku life that she lives at other times. I suspect Aya is enjoying this impression of Konata far too much though, hence your impression that she is overdoing it, but other than that, I think she has done well.

Casual japanese involves a lot of noises to express things... the impish noises are not out of line... but I kind of figure Kona spends a little more time in the "Marvin the Android" kind of monotonic voice --- but that should recede as the series progresses and she adapts more of the mannerisms of her 'new' friends. I like the noises... but I also feel like Kagami's VA is hitting her personality a touch more precisely in any given instant.
"Nani to?"

Fortunately, its rare I break out of immersion during an episode to worry about that. Which means they're doing their job --- otherwise my immersion breakages are usually when they do an obvious riff like the Initial D sequence.

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Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

Fascinating points. I was liking those extra little sounds as feeling like a sloppy otaku. I have no real previous image of Konata to go against, but I can see your point, which is probably what the director was getting at, too, when he told her to go slower. I'll listen for the emphasis on the last syllable.

My own opinion is that Aaya is not a "pro" in the way of Horie Yui, say, who is very flexible and in control of everything she does, but whom I sometimes find too professional, too smooth, and a bit -- not mechanical, but something like that. Not that I don't enjoy her work. Aaya is rough in some ways, and can repeat herself (like with that final emphasis, or with the way Layla's voice drops), but is now doing especially interesting things. Including Konata, which is a style of voice I can't remember hearing before. And especially Layla, for me.

I always have to factor in the fact that I have never lived in Japan to soak up the subtleties of how people really talk and to learn Japanese better. I tend to like the extremes. I'm always disappointed to hear Yahagi Sayuri trying to sound more normal and not giving us her own extravagant voice, the one she used in Karin and Kyoushirou. And I love Sasaki Nozomi's voice. My favorite seiyuu, however, would come from among Kuwashima Houko, Paku Romi, Tanaka Rie, Kawasumi Ayako and Orikasa Fumiko, with Koshimizu Ami, Yahagi Sayuri and Aaya coming up fast. In homage to your avatar, I'll add that I'm enjoying Nana's work in Darker than Black.